


Better Than A Cabana On The Beach

by theflyingpeanut



Series: Overwatch Rides Again [15]
Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Bondage, F/F, Fluff and Smut, Light Dom/sub, Trans Aleksandra "Zarya" Zaryanova, Trans Angela "Mercy" Ziegler, Trans Female Character, a bit of angst, and also a little bit of toe sucking at one point, me trying to work out thoughts about characters and the world
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-03
Updated: 2018-01-03
Packaged: 2019-02-09 23:58:24
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 22,377
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12899634
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theflyingpeanut/pseuds/theflyingpeanut
Summary: It's hard to watch her daughter throw herself into harm's way. Hard to watch that harm find her. It's not how she ever thought her old age would go.Still, she's with people she cares about. She's with her daughter. She's got another chance to make things right, a chance to help Fareeha. That's better than being than any of the alternatives, as tempting as Hawaii might still be.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is more self indulgent stuff and another follow-up to the last few stories in this series. It's also something that's finally come out after months of struggling with actually doing my writing, so I'm happy to finally be able to share it with y'all. If nothing else, I've been able to write more since I actually got this thing finished, which is always good. 
> 
> The rest of the chapters will be uploaded over the coming week or so, once they've all been edited and such.

Ana was used to seeing people get hurt, get killed. Civilians, subordinates, friends, enemies. It had gotten too much to take for a time, but even then, it was something she was sure she'd become accustomed to.

None of it had come close to watching Fareeha get shot out of the sky. Her sister's death, perhaps, but she struggled to remember that. Too much confusion, too badly injured herself to really realise what had happened at the time. That had come later. Nothing really close to watching her daughter's jet explode. Nothing compared to the way her body froze at the sight of her hurtling towards the ground, her breath caught in her throat. Nothing compared to how the whole world seemed to slow to a crawl as she stared, unable to do anything to make a difference.

Everything after was a blur. She could vaguely remember charging forwards to Fareeha's body as she hit the ground, Reinhardt by her side. Aleks' shield holding steady over her body as Ana reached her, dragging her back along the road. Jumping through a teleporter with Angela, bundling her daughter onto an operating table, barely paying attention to anything else as they began their retreat.

She felt guilty about it afterwards. Ana knew that she should have been concerned about the injuries Lena and Jesse had suffered. About what Reyes had done to them. They were her people, even if she wasn't in charge of them any more. It had been hard to give them more than a passing thought, though. Angela had been shouting out directions, arranging her machines around the table, sending streams of light into her daughter's body, hooking needles up to her arms. A slow stream of blood coming from her daughter's nose as her armour was set aside, as more machines started sounding their alarms. All of her fears were being given life in front of her, and there was nothing she could do about it.

She could hear Lena cry out as Angela pushed another needle into her daughter's side, as the alarms slowly died away, replaced by a regular, rhythmic tone. Everything was muffled as she walked forward, taking hold of Fareeha's hand and squeezing it gently. A distant part of her thought that she should try to comfort Lena, try to tell her things would be alright. That Angela would keep her daughter safe. Would keep her partner safe. She couldn't bring herself to leave Fareeha's side, though. Not if she had any kind of choice in the matter. Not when things could change so quickly.

~

It should have been a simple mission. Ana knew there was no such thing, not really, but she still hadn't expected such a well prepared ambush. The only reason they'd managed to break out of it was Fareeha's initial charge skyward, but that had ended quickly. After that, it had been a matter of pulling back, sticking to cover and shields, doing their best not to get caught by machine gun fire or explosions.

There wasn't much for her to do after they got back to the base. There were people who needed sewing together, needed their wounds cleaned, but Angela wouldn't let her near them. Said she needed time to collect herself. Ana didn't agree, but she didn't feel like she had much ground to stand on either. She could have been helping people before, if she hadn't frozen up. She could hardly blame Angela for worrying that she'd do the same again.

Still, there weren't many things to do beyond helping the injured, and she was feeling a bit out of place. Almost everyone had left the hanger, most of them seemingly heading towards the medical wing. Aleks was one of the few who hadn't, and Ana sat down in a corner, back to a wall, watching her talk to Jack and Genji. She couldn't help but feel a bit of pride at the way she'd taken charge, even if it was deadened by her worry for Fareeha. It almost reminded her of herself, back in the day. She'd taken charge of Overwatch more times than she could count, with Jack being either absent or injured on a regular basis. It had taken him a long time to figure out how to delegate, and Ana had been given plenty of chances to prove how good a leader she was. As far as she was concerned, she'd never disappointed.

Part of her wanted to jump back in, wanted to start ordering everyone around. It wasn't a big part, though, and the desire soon left. She'd had her fill of leading people, taking responsibility for them. She couldn't go back to it again. Better off leaving it for those who still had the passion. Still had the drive. She was happy enough to take orders from now on. Ones coming from people she trusted, at least.

She watched Aleks' hand slap down on Jack's shoulder, feeling a bit of warmth wash over the worry. It wasn't necessarily what she wanted to think about at that moment, but she still found herself being surprised by just how attractive her girlfriend was. Leadership suited her, even if she didn't get many chances to prove it. Ana wasn't overly concerned by that, seeing as Aleks taking charge meant something had happened to her daughter. Still, it was a fun thing to keep in mind, something to remember when they had a chance to be alone.

She shook her head, looking down at the ground, sighing quietly to herself. Now wasn't the time for that. It wasn't right. Not when she was waiting to find out how long her daughter would be out of commission for. Angela had told her Fareeha would be fine, that she'd make a full recovery. Ana believed that. She also knew that even if she was fine, it would take her time to get on her feet again. Getting over those kinds of injuries was never quick, even with some of the best medical care in the world available.

“You ever get tired of drooling over your little girlfriend?” Ana grinned, looking up at Jack's mask. He was standing over her, arms crossed, expression unreadable under the visor.

“She's hardly little.” He shrugged, moving to her side and sliding down the wall. “There's no need to be jealous. I'm sure you'll find someone to put up with all your nonsense some day.” She covered her mouth and chuckled as he sighed, resting his head back.

“You used to show me a bit of respect. Remember that?”

“That hasn't been true for a long time, and you better not be making anyone think otherwise. You'll damage my reputation.” He snorted, and she smiled as her eye closed, resting against he wall, feeling the cold creep through it. “Glad to see you're not hurt. Or, at least, not hurt too seriously.” She'd found him sneaking needles and thread into his room on a few occasions since they'd joined back up. He didn't like Angela treating him. Didn't like people seeing what he looked like under the mask. She'd seen enough of the scars to understand why. Didn't think it was sensible, but she still understood.

“You know me. Tough as old boots. Keep myself together pretty easily.” She chuckled again, a little quieter than before. Jack had survived things he had no right to. Things plenty of other didn't. It wasn't always easy to tell if it was luck or skill or something else entirely. “Heard Fareeha's doing well. Angela's got her steady. That's good.”

“She's in good hands. We couldn't hope for a better doctor.” Ana looked down at the ground, a small grin tugging at her lips. “It would be nice to have another one around, though. It must be stressful, treating your partner's child.”

“Angela's a professional. She's not gonna let nerves distract her. Plus, Zenyatta's helping her. He's a lot better at doctoring than you'd expect a monk to be.” She closed her eye, sighing and listening to him chuckle.

“Monks are smart. Omnic monks particularly so, from what I understand.” Ana kept her eye shut, listening to the room grow quiet around them, taking a deep, slow breath. “I thought she wouldn't have to fight. Thought she'd get to have a peaceful life. Things were getting better. They should be better.”

“No one could have seen the Crisis coming. None of us could have been prepared for it.” Ana nodded, not entirely sure she believed what he was saying. Perhaps none of their people could have seen anything coming, could have done anything to stop it. Someone had to have an idea, though. Something as big as that couldn't come out of nowhere. It wasn't possible. “We made the world better. The work we did, the lives we saved, the violence we stopped. We did everything we could to make things safer.”

“Maybe that wasn't enough.” It was almost like old times again. Jack had always believed in Overwatch, in the good he saw it doing, in the change he thought it could make. Ana had believed it too, if not quite so fervently. Still, she'd always been on his side in the discussions, the arguments with Reyes, sometimes with Reinhardt. They always seemed to crop up when something went wrong. When they were waiting to find out if they'd lost another friend. “I never thought we'd be sitting like this again. Never thought we'd be waiting for news about Fareeha.”

“It feels wrong to be doing nothing. Like I should be off planning our next move, organizing the troops. Haven't been able to get out of that mindset.” Ana glanced over at him, wondering if he was frowning under the mask. He'd always done that when he was thinking, always screwing his face up. It had completely ruined every attempt at intimidation he'd ever made, no matter how much he insisted otherwise.

“You heard any news about your son? Is he doing OK?” He looked up at her, staring through the visor a moment before starting to chuckle.

“Yeah, he's doing fine. Got married not too long ago. Posted some pictures online. They look like a happy couple.” He crossed his arms behind his head, leaning back against the wall. “Still doing IT work. Seems to enjoy it, from what I've heard.”

“Sounds safe. Sounds useful.” She leaned forward again, wishing again that Fareeha could have stuck with engineering. Could have stuck with university. She knew her daughter was proud of her work, and she was proud of it too. She could proud and still wish Fareeha had a safer life, even if it had meant meant never having a chance to be part of it again. “He might be happy to have a father again, you know. Fareeha took a bit of time, but I'm reasonably sure she's glad that I'm still alive.”

“Yeah, but you were a good parent. You were there for her. Can't say the same for myself.” She watched him stand from the corner of her eye, watched his arms stretch high above his head. “I'm gonna go see if there's any chores that need doing. Make sure the kids haven't forgotten to put their tools away.” Ana rolled her eye, chuckling as he started to walk forward, stopping when her turned back to her. “Fareeha reminds me of Reyes, sometimes.”

“Oh?” She couldn't deny she'd had the thought herself. She had the same kind of fire he'd had, even if it was a bit calmer. A bit cooler. “She reminds me more of Reinhardt, if I'm honest, though I can see what you mean. It would be nice if she reminded someone of me.” She grinned up at him, watching him rub the back of his head, fighting the urge to laugh. Same nervous habits, same tells. All those years and he'd barely changed at all.

“She does. Of course she does. She's different, though. She's her own person. She's a good commander, and I'm glad to follow her. Just makes me wonder how good Reyes could've been. If he would've been better than me.” Ana watched him for a moment, watched him rub his head, shuffle his feet against the floor. She smiled.

“I don't know. It would have been hard. Can't think of many people in my life I've been prouder to work with.” It was mostly true. They'd done good together. They'd made the world safer, made it a better place to live, even if they could have done better. Even if there were still hundreds of problems to fix.

“Thanks. That means a lot. Really.” He started to move off again, giving her a quick salute. “Let me know if you hear any news about Fareeha. Keep my mind at ease.”

“Of course. You feel free to come talk to me, too. It's not healthy to spend so much time alone.” He'd been quiet in the desert, and he'd been quiet once they'd gotten back, too. This had been the closest they'd come to a serious conversation in years. She didn't want to wait so long for the next one. He was her friend, after all, even if they'd drifted apart.

He stopped for a moment, looking like he was going to respond. Instead, he just nodded, walking out the hangar, leaving her alone again. She rested back against the wall once he'd left, eye drifting round the space, wondering when she'd be able to head up to the infirmary. When she'd be allowed to see her daughter, to see Jesse and Lena. They were doing fine, from what she'd been told, but she still owed them a visit. Still owed them her company. She was tempted to try and sneak into the ward, to check on them in person, when a shadow slowly moved over her. She looked up, stared into Aleks' grinning face, and couldn't help but grin back.

“Fareeha's doing fine. Surgery went well. She's still unconscious, but we can go see her now if you want.” Ana felt as though a weight had been lifted from her chest, and she reached out for Aleks' hand, pulling herself to her feet with a sigh.

“Well, let's get going then. No point wasting any more time, is there?” Ana started to move forward, still holding onto Aleks' hand, fishing her phone from her pocket. It might have been a little lazier than just grabbing him on the way, but she didn't care. She was going to see her daughter. He couldn't blame her for not wanting to wait any longer than she already had.


	2. Chapter 2

They didn't stay for too long. Didn't have much of a choice in the matter. Ana sat by Fareeha's side, holding her hand, not paying attention to much else. She caught a few bits and pieces of what Angela was saying. That Fareeha was going to be fine. That she was going to be out for a few days while the treatment healed her up. That's she'd be out of action for a couple weeks after that. It was hard to pay attention to much of it, though. Hard to take it in.

She couldn't remember Fareeha feeling small. Even when she'd been a baby, she'd been loud, screaming or laughing or throwing things around. She'd always filled up the room, always been larger than life. Even when she was reading, when she was keeping to herself, there was an energy, a joy that radiated from her. She'd been a shining light in Ana's life, and it was hard to connect that with the person lying in front of her.

She seemed weak. Delicate. Wires trailed from her chest, leading to machines with numbers flashing over them, making sure she wasn't crashing. A needle in her arm, a tube down her throat, a stream of golden light flowing into her from one of Angela's creations. So many things, just to pull her body back together, to bring her back to the world. Till then, she'd just keep lying there, small and frail and vulnerable. Ana hated it. Hated to think fragile her daughter was. How easily the day could have had a different ending.

Ana left when Lena arrived. She wanted to be able to say something to her, something to help. Nothing came, though. She just stepped aside, squeezing her shoulder as she wheeled herself to the side of Fareeha's bed, watching her take hold of Fareeha's hand. She hoped it was enough. Enough to let Lena know that she cared, even if she couldn't find the words for it.

Angela sighed once they'd left the room, pushing the door shut behind her. She almost seemed relieved to be out of there, and before Ana could say anything, Angela’s arms were closing round her neck. She stood for a moment, feeling Aleks close in behind her, feeling a chin resting on the top of her head. She slowly moved her hands to Angela's back, giving her a quick squeeze, feeling Aleks' hands press down on her own, trapping her between them.

“I'm sorry I kicked you out of the infirmary earlier. I know you wanted to help, but it would've been too much.” Ana felt a kiss on her cheek, smiling as she turned to kiss her back.

“It's fine. You were right. Wasn't exactly in the best state of mind when we got back.” Angela smiled, giving her another peck on the lips before wriggling out of their grasp. She could still feel Aleks' arms hanging over her shoulder, chin resting on her head. “Got more work to do?”

“Yes. Yes, quite a lot actually. Records to update, medications to organise. Important, boring stuff.” She took hold of Ana's hands, giving them a quick squeeze. “I'm going to be busy for a few days. Spend most of my time up here. You can come up and visit if you want, but I doubt I'll be leaving much at all.” Ana smiled at her, nodding her head. She knew how it was when people were hurt, especially when the medical teams were understaffed. One trained doctor certainly qualified as that.

“We'll look after you. Bring you food. Make sure you shower. Stuff like that.” Aleks took hold of Ana's hands as she spoke, and Ana nodded in agreement. Angela's cheeks reddened a little, and she rubbed the back of her head, looking away from them.

“I appreciate that, but there's no need to worry. I can look after myself.”

“We can look after you, too.” Ana smiled at her, and turned her eye up to Aleks. “Wouldn't you be happy for your girlfriends to try and look after you?”

“I'm always happy when my girlfriends look after me. Just, incredibly grateful. Overjoyed, in fact.” Angela sighed, rolling her eyes at both of them and walking backwards to the infirmary door.

“Alright. Alright. The company will be appreciated. Just, you know, make sure to look after yourselves, too. You'll be in charge for a while, Aleks. That's a lot of stress. Won't do any good for you to end up in here as well.” Aleks nodded, and Angela's gaze turned to Ana again. “I'll let you know if there's any updates. Otherwise, you can come visit her whenever you want. Just try to take some breaks. Promise?”

“I promise.” Angela smiled, slipping through the door and leaving her alone with Aleks. Ana looked up at her, staring up her nose, watching her tilt her head forward a little. Her chin was still resting on her head, hands still gripping each other.

“Have you eaten?” Ana shook her head, taking in the weirdness of the view. She'd never really seen Aleks from this angle. It made her look even bigger than she was. “Alright. Maybe time to get some food. Can bring up some stuff for Angela once we're done.”

“You're being very responsible. Such a caring partner.” Ana leant against her body, slipping her head back against her neck. “Did you have a chance to see Fareeha? I feel like I took up most of the time in there.”

“Saw her earlier. Sat with her a bit after once things were organised. Once Angela was done.” Aleks' head moved back, and Ana watched her stare up at the ceiling. “She'll be alright. She's strong, and Angela's a miracle worker. Give it a few days and she'll be back in charge again. I can't wait. Don't think this suits me that much.”

“I disagree. I think it suits you wonderfully.” She grinned at the hint of red that rose to Aleks' cheeks, slowly pushing herself forward and turning to face her. “C'mon. Let's got get that food, darling. Bring some back up here. Make sure Angela eats something tonight.” Ana smiled up at her, grabbing her hands again and slowly pulling her towards the exit. “Maybe we can come up for longer tomorrow. Spend some more time with Angela. Some more time with Fareeha. What do you say?”

“Alright. I'll probably be busy, but alright. I can do that.” She walked backwards through the door, still pulling Aleks along, still smiling up at her. “What should we do for tonight, then? It's gonna be just the two of us, after all.”

“I'll think of something. Though being with you would be more than enough, I'm sure.” Aleks' cheeks flushed again, and Ana chuckled. They'd been seeing each other for months now, and she was still delighted whenever that happened. It made her feel like she was in love all over again whenever she saw it. It took her mind of everything wrong with the world, for at least a little while.

~

Leftover curry had been the meal of choice. Something that had been put together a few days before, something that had matured a little in the fridge. Ana hadn't realised how hungry she'd been till she started eating, and her bowl was cleared almost as fast as Aleks'. Angela had wolfed hers down as well, almost as though she forgotten to eat for the rest of the day. Wouldn't be the first time that had happened, of course. Not even the first time it had happened at the new Overwatch. She'd always gotten engrossed in her work. Always shut out everything else in the world. Even the basic stuff.

Ana had always been impressed with how hard she'd worked for the team. Had always been there to berate her as well, when she wasn't taking good care of herself. Things were different now, and not just because they were seeing each other. She gotten softer, and she liked it. She still had her edge, could still bring it to bear when she needed to. There were other ways round things, though. A gentle prod here and there, and the people she cared about would do what she needed them to. A much more pleasant experience all round.

It helped that there were others who would do the berating when it was needed. Helped having Aleks there to sit down with Angela till she'd finished the food, to remind her to shower. There was a bit more forcefulness in her voice, even if it was kinder than hers had been at that age. It probably helped that the two of them were seeing each other as well. Ana had watched Aleks dressing down the others, had watched her getting them to stop messing around. There weren't any of the gentle touches then. None of the soft smiles.

They couldn't stay long with Angela. Ana had left the two of them alone for a little at the end, left them to talk about how the next few days would be. Left to see her daughter. She was still in the same bed, still had the same wires coming from her skin. The little woman snoring at her side was new, though. Lena had come out of it better than Jesse, better than Fareeha, but she'd still taken a beating. Still wasn't allowed to leave the medical wing. Still had a needle hanging from her arm, feeding something into her blood. Ana watched over the two of them for a few minutes, leaving when her heart was starting to ache again. She said her goodbyes to Angela, promising to come and visit her again the next day, before dragging Aleks back to her room.

There wasn't any particular plan for what would happen next. Most other days the two of them would've been all over each other the instant they got in. Not that day, though. Not with everything that had happened. A night of cuddling seemed to be more in order. Maybe watching some films, listening to some music. Something calming. Something to take her mind off of things for a while.

“Do you remember the first time you lost someone?” Ana's head was laying on Aleks' chest, and she felt the hand playing with her hair freeze at the question. She'd been thinking about Fareeha crashing from the sky. About the number of friends she'd seen die over the years. The number of strangers. It was something they'd never really talked about. Something that had never really come up.

“Like, how do you mean? Just someone I know dying? Seeing someone get killed?” Fingers started twirling through her hair again, and Ana closed her eye, moving a hand to Aleks' hip. It was nice to lay on her like this. She was softer than people expected. Strong and muscular, but still soft. Chubby. Comfy.

“Either. Both. None. Whatever you feel comfortable with.” She nestled her head back against Aleks' chest, giving her hip a quick squeeze. She'd understand if they didn't talk about it that night. She just wanted to get it out there. Let it be known that this was something she wanted to go through at some point.

“Right. Well. Second one, then, I guess. Gonna be a bit easier.” Ana felt a hand moved to her shoulder, rubbing over it while the other kept playing with her hair. “We were in an APC. Riding through a city, patrolling. Omnic's had already hit a bunch of towns and cities, slowly spreading west. We were gonna stop them there. Gonna hold the line. I hadn't seen any combat before then.”

“Were you scared?” Ana reached up to the hand one her, brushing her fingers over it.

“Yeah. It was tense, waiting for the fight. Wondering where they'd be coming from. We had a Svyatagor heading towards us for backup, had some artillery setting up round the city. Air support hanging back, waiting to see where it would be needed. APC's and tanks moving through the city, ready to head where they were needed. No real solid positions. Nothing easy to target.” Ana heard a sigh from above her, felt Aleks' body shift a little under her. “There were some guys arguing in the APC. Talking shit to each other. Sergeant was sitting next to them, looked like he was about to say something, when...” She trailed off, and Ana opened her eye, tilting her head back to look at her. She was staring up at the ceiling, still playing with her hair.

“What hit you?”

“Titan. Some kind of cloaking on it. Kept it off the sensors till it was too late. Big shell ripped through the vehicle and kept going. There was suddenly just a hole in the metal in front of me, blood and twisted metal surrounding it. Sergeant was gone, the guys arguing were gone. Driver was hurt bad, unconscious. Vehicle just rolled to a stop. I just froze there for a while. Listened to the explosions in the distance, to people screaming. There was a girl next to me. Engineer. Meant to be looking after the shields once we were in combat, making sure things kept working. Been with the rest of them a while, I think. I was the new one on the crew. She just started crying at some point. Didn't stop till we started moving again. We moved the driver somewhere safe, got to work on the turret. Got it off the APC, and cobbled enough stuff together to let me carry it as.”

“What happened after that?” Aleks lifted her head a little, meeting her gaze and smiling.

“We won. Pushed the Omnics back. Svyatagor arrived, air support arrived. We cleared up the Titan, mopped up the rest of them. We did well. Lost too many in the initial attack, but we still pushed them back.” She fell back onto the pillow, smile slowly disappearing. “Called me a hero. Woman ripping a turret off an APC, charging into battle. Good propaganda. They got me a custom set-up for cannon. Think the girl who helped me got discharged. Driver, too. Never really heard much about it.”

“Understandable. Hard to keep going after something like that.” Aleks nodded, and Ana smiled again. “So, you never ripped the turret of an APC, then? I was always impressed by that.” She saw Aleks' cheeks flush a little, and chuckled quietly.

“I mean, it would've broken. We both had to be careful getting it off, making sure nothing got damaged. Still took that thing on a jog through a city with a shield generator strapped to my back. Still impressive.” Ana felt a squeeze on her shoulder, felt Aleks' body shift around beneath her. “I wouldn't have made it here without her. I hope she's doing alright.”

“It's probably the least she deserves.” She smiled a little, letting her hand fall back to Aleks' hip, staring back up at the ceiling. “I hadn't seen combat before the Crisis started. Things were mostly peaceful. Had been for years. I'd hoped things would stay that way. That the world was safe.”

“Everyone did. Would've been stupid not to. That's why it hit so hard.” She kept running her finger's over Aleks' knuckles, still staring at the ceiling.

“Other places got hit first. Russia, America, Australia. The UK. There was an Omnium in Sinai. A joint project with Egypt, Israel and Palestine. An effort to build a lasting peace in the area. Shipped goods  all over the world till it got shut down. When Omniums in other places started up again, started attacking people, the government evacuated people. Sending them further West, or through to Palestine, wherever they could take them. Tried to get us set up in the cities round it, ready to take down any Omnics that came through.”

“Things didn't go well, I presume.” Ana closed her eye, slowly letting out a breath.

“It was easy, at first. There were some apartment blocks near the edge of the city. A bunch of us set up in them, snipers and spotters. Artillery was behind us, spotters for them on the roofs. Machines gun emplacements further ahead. Bastion units were coming in, trying to swarm over the defences. We took them down. Barely any casualties. They couldn't even get close. We were organised. We were prepared. We thought we'd got through the worst of it.” She felt Aleks' fingers slip through her own, softly squeezing round her hand. “Something came out of the sand, burrowed up out of it. Never seen anything else like it. There was a massive gun on it's back. Bigger than any I'd ever seen. I heard someone call in a strike on it, but it was too late.”

“How bad was it?”

“The other apartment building was nearly gone. Shell landed on it, ripped apart the top floors. No one got out. Thing didn't have a chance to make another shot, but it didn't have to. People I'd known for years, people I'd trained with, people I'd grown up with. All gone, just like that. There was some more Bastion units after that, more casualties without all the sniper support. We still pushed them back, though.”

“Sounds like a touch fight. Surprised you got out.” Ana grinned a little, turning onto her stomach and staring up at her.

“I'm a good shot, if you hadn't heard. Took down more Omnics that day than anyone else. Earned some recognition for me and my sister. Best spotter I ever had.”

“Didn't mean to slander your good name. I'm always surprised by the stuff people got out of back then. Back before they really knew what they were dealing with.” Ana felt fingers running through her hair as she collapsed onto Aleks' chest again, closing her eye.

“We got called back, my sister and I. Wanted a report on what we'd seen. What we should expect. Second wave came while we were gone. Swarmed over the defences. No survivors. Happened all over the place. First attack had been a test, I think. The Omnium wanted to know how we fought, what kind of resistance we could bring against it. After that, nothing. A few weeks later, the next wave came. Took a few miles more. Repeat ad nauseum till Overwatch finally formed. Till it gave us a chance to strike back.”

“Not like the crisis in Russia, then. The Omniums just kept producing as many units as they could. A constant surge coming against us. No chance for rest, no lull in the fight.” Ana crawled up her body, till her face was in the crook of her neck.

“None of the Omniums were the same. None of them fought exactly the same, none of them had the same goals. Made it hard to make plans till the people making them accepted that.” She felt one of her Aleks' hand slip between her shoulders, slowly rubbing over her back.

“Good thing the world had people like you then, isn't it?” Ana smiled, moving her hands up to Aleks' head, rubbing them over her hair. It was starting to grow out a little. Starting to hang over her ears. It was a cute look. “What happened to your sister? You've never mentioned her before now.”

“Oh.” Her hands froze up in Aleks' hair. She hadn't told anyone for years. People had always known. Then again, most of the people in her life had been part of Overwatch for a long time. Long enough to know the story. “She'd joined up with Overwatch a little after I did. Got killed a few years into the crisis. Don't really want to talk about it right now. Sorry.”

“Don't have to be sorry. I understand.” She felt a gentle kiss on the top of her head, and she smiled. They stayed laying there like that for a while, gently touching at each other, neither making a sound till Aleks coughed quietly. “I, uh, get it. My mother and brother were killed a few years ago. Lived in one of the first towns to get hit by the Omnics. Never made it out.” Ana pushed herself up, watching Aleks force a smile up at her. “Don't really want to talk about it either. Just wanted to let you know.”

“I'm sorry.” She lifted a hand to her cheek, cupping it, running her thumb over it. She wasn't sure what else to say. She'd never been good at this. She watched Aleks turn into her hand, felt her lips press against it. She hoped it was enough.

“Thanks. We should probably get some sleep. Been a long day.” Ana nodded, sliding to her side, watching her stand up and head for the bathroom. It was still odd, seeing her in that bear nightie. Still adorable. “We'll go see Fareeha in the morning. Bring some breakfast up for Angela. Sound like a plan?”

“An excellent one.” She watched Aleks smile at her again as she turned off the light, and puleld the covers over herself as she went into the bathroom. She stared up into the dark while she waited for her, wondering what else she could do. She knew Aleks was still hurting. Could see it in her eyes. She just didn't want to push her. Didn't want to make things worse. The two of them had promised to talk to each other more had promised to be more open. She didn't expect that to hold for something like this, though.

“Hope you haven't stolen all the covers.” Ana chuckled as the bed shifted under her. She turned onto her side, feeling Aleks' arm drape over her shoulder as her body pushed against her back.

“Of course not. I don't need near as much as you.” She smiled as Aleks snuggled into her, feeling the heat pouring from her body. She wasn't sure she really needed a cover when the two of them were as close as this. Ana took hold of the hand hanging in front of her, bringing it to her lips, and gently kissing over the knuckles. She felt Aleks squirm a little at the touch, chuckling at the effect such a little action had. “I love you.”

“I love you too.” Ana smiled, closing her eye and trying to let her mind go blank. She didn't need to hear the words before she slept. Still, as far as moments to end a day on, it was certainly one of her favourites. It always made her feel like things would look a little better when she woke. That she was heading for a better day.


	3. Chapter 3

“How exactly do your machines work, Angela?” Ana stared down at Fareeha, watching golden light flow slowly into her. She could hear Angela opening the door behind her, could hear her footsteps moving closer.

“I thought you would have known. It would have been hard to weaponize if you didn't.” She squeezed her fist at hint of venom behind her words, bit down hard on her lip. They'd had the argument before, when she'd first come back to the team. It had cropped up again on occasion, whenever she'd needed to have her rifle repaired. She felt a hand grip her shoulder, heard Angela sighing behind her. “I'm sorry. That was unnecessary.”

“Possibly. Possibly not. Not something I can just expect you to move past, after all.” Ana had known it was a betrayal of trust when she'd stolen the weapon. Overwatch had designed it without Angela's approval, but it had never made it to the field. The UN hadn't done anything with it either. The prototype had never been used till she'd used it. Angela had fought hard for that. Had fought hard for the ideal that medics shouldn't be armed as a routine thing. Not after they stopped just fighting robots. “I should have let you know at the time, at least. I owed you that much.”

“You were still pretending to be dead, remember? Can't imagine I would have pleased to know that the Shrike was using my technology to hunt bounties.” Ana smiled weakly as arms draped over her shoulder, as she felt Angela nuzzling against her neck. “I trust that you have good intentions. That you want to use that thing to help people. That you already have. If people find out about it, though, then it's proof that this works. Then it's going to end up in the wrong hands. That's how these things always go.”

“I know. I wish it could be different.” She wouldn't apologise for taking the rifle, even knowing how much it had hurt Angela. Too much pride to do that when she was sure it was the right call to make. She'd needed it then. Needed it now. Something that could help her allies as much as it hurt her enemies. “If it eases your mind, I won't be the one to tell anyone about it. The secret would die with me, if I had my way.”

“You'd have to keep the secret for a long time, then. Still, I'm sure you'd manage it if you had to.” Ana nodded, gut twisting a little at the hint of bitterness in her voice. She wasn't entirely sure if they could ever fully move past this. She cared about Angela as much as she'd ever cared about anyone, and she was sure the feeling was a mutual one. This would always be there, though. This one betrayal that she couldn't make right. “It's all nanotech, Ana. You know that. I've talked about it before.”

“I know that. It's just...” Ana took hold of Fareeha's hand, looking over her face. Only a day before it had been covered in blood and bruises. Already, it was almost back to normal. “I've heard stories of men rising in a flash of golden light. Of you flying through disasters, giving the dead life and getting them to safety. I was wondering...”

“Fareeha was never dead. I can't offer anything to those who are. The stories are somewhat exagerrated.” She felt a kiss on the side of her neck, Angela's hands clasping over her stomach. “If there's a sign of life, I can do something. A surge of nanomachines, rebuilding a person, helping them cling to that flicker of hope. Fareeha wasn't even that far gone, though. She could have been, but we got her out of there quickly. Got her fixed up before there was anything to really worry about.”

“Didn't seem like that.” Too many alarms for there to be nothing to worry about. Too much blood. “When will she wake up?”

“Like I said, it'll be a few days. Easier to keep her under while her body finishes healing up. Otherwise, it's a pretty painful process. I can speak to that first hand.” Ana turned her head to her, giving her a little smile. “You've got nothing to worry about. I promise.”

“I believe you. I do.” She glanced back at the table to their left, at the two empty plates sitting either side of one piled with food. “Looks like you're not the only one that needs to looking after.” Angela chuckled, standing up and heading back to her desk.

“I'm not the only one who's busy. Aleks is picking up everything Fareeha would normally handle. We've all been there. I'm not going to make too much of an issue of her being late for her meals now and then.”

“I might.” Ana looked back to Fareeha, watching her chest slowly rise and fall. She'd been doing well as their Commander. She'd been keeping on top of things. Ana was proud of her. She knew how hard the job was, how easy she'd made it look so far. “I'll stay here for a while longer, then I'll take Aleks' food to her. Make sure she eats something tonight.”

“I'm sure she won't begrudge you giving her something to eat.” She heard Angela chuckle, feeling her cheeks flush a little. “I'm going to be checking on Jesse, if you need to see me again. Otherwise, I'll look forward to breakfast tomorrow.” Ana turned, nodding and smiling at her ass he left, taking hold of Fareeha's hand. She wouldn't stay much longer. Didn't want to let Aleks' food grow too cold. Still, she wasn't going to miss a chance to spend a bit longer with her daughter. She trusted in Angela's skill, trusted that Fareeha would be back to full health soon enough. That couldn't stop her from worrying, though. There wasn't anything in the world that could stop that.

~

Angela's timetable was pretty much spot on. After a few days of visits, Ana came up with their evening meal to find Fareeha sitting up in her bed, chatting with Jesse and Lena. She stood in the door for a moment, watching them all talk to each other, till Fareeha looked across at her, a smile spreading over her face.

Ana was glad to see her awake. Glad to see her smiling. She was also waiting to see if Fareeha wanted her to stick around for long. Things had been getting better between them, and they'd started talking more and more over the past few months. She just didn't know if Fareeha would want to spend much time with her after she'd finally woken up.

As it turned out, there hadn't been a reason to worry. Ana ended up sitting between Jesse and Lena, all of them chatting about what had been happening over the past few days, About how everyone was doing, about how the mission had gone, what they were going to do next. About everything and nothing. Eventually, things came round to the injuries Lena had suffered, and things got a little bit quieter until Ana and Jesse moved away. As much as she wanted to stay longer, she understood that they needed their space. Needed to talk about things, to be close to each other for a while.

Jesse headed off to his own room, giving a quick nod to her as he walked down the hall. He was moving a little awkwardly, and he was still missing his arm. Still, he was out of bed. It was good to see, even if he had a ways to go till he was back to full health. That left Ana alone in the hall, unable to think of anything to do but heading to Angela’s office.

Ana opened the door quietly, smiling as she saw Angela working away at her computer. She moved closer, walking as softly as she could, struggling not to laugh as she saw exactly what was scrolling down the screen. Hardly appropriate for work, even if most of Angela’s work would have been finished at that point. She placed a hand on each shoulder, feeling her body freeze as she bent down to her right ear, brushing it with her lips.

“You know, it's not exactly how I'd describe going down on a woman, but I suppose the words are pretty enough to make up for that.” She saw Angela's cheeks start to glow as the writing disappeared, quietly chuckling into her ear. “So, my dear doctor, have you been missing us?”

“I finally had a bit of guaranteed free time. You can hardly blame me for making use of it.” She turned in her seat, staring up at Ana with a smile. “Did you get a chance to talk to Fareeha?”

“I did. It was good. She seems to be doing well.” Ana leaned in, pressing her forehead against Angela's and closing her eye. “She's in there with Lena at the moment. Figure it's best to give those two a bit of privacy for a while. Let them catch up.” She felt hands moving to her hips, gently gripping them.

“Good to know she's doing well. She seemed a little confused when she first woke, but she perked up quickly once Lena burst in. Made it a little bit more difficult to finish the last of my tests, but I couldn't bear to separate the two of them.” Ana felt a breath over her lips, and opened her eye to find Angela staring up at her, a blush spreading over her cheeks. “I can understand how they feel. Been hard spending these few days away from you.”

“You've still seen me. It's hardly the same.” She grinned as Angela slowly stood, still staring up at her. “Anyone could walk in here, you know. See how desperate you are.”

“I know.” Ana bit her lip as Angela pushed her back into the wall, as she felt a hand moving to her ass, squeezing it hard. It wasn't exactly rare for her to take charge like this, but it was still a break from the norm. Not an unwelcome one, either. “I've missed you. Missed being with you. Missed all of it.”

“Such a romantic.” She took hold of Angela's hair, holding it tight and pulling her in to her neck. “I've missed you too, darling. I've missed this.” Angela's other hand was sliding from her hip to her stomach, pushing slowly into her trousers. She closed her eye as she felt lips pressing against her neck, slowly kissing path up to her ear.

“I love you.” Fingers pushing lower, brushing through her hair, slipping down through her folds. She bit her lip, trying to stay quiet. The walls were pretty thick, pretty good at blocking out sound. That didn't mean she wanted to test things.

Angela bit down on her neck as she slid a finger into her, and she couldn't help but gasp. Ana was always surprised by how strong she was, never really appreciating it till they were in a situation like this. Till Angela was the only thing keeping her from falling to the floor. She moved a hand to her back, running it over her labcoat, pulling their bodies closer. Her hips were rolling against Angela's palm, and she moaned quietly as she felt a thumb running round her clit, legs feeling weak beneath her. Just as she was starting to let herself go, starting to get into the moment, she heard the door next to them slam open.

“Angela! Why didn't anyone… Oh.” Ana opened her eye, seeing Aleks' glowing face over the top of Angela's head. The two of them slowly pulled away from each other, each breathing heavily, neither of them looking at each other. It wasn't as though they hadn't all seen much more than this. Hadn't done much more together. It didn't make it any less embarrassing to be caught in the act. “I, uh, didn't meant to interrupt.”

“It's fine. We probably should have locked the door if we didn't want that to happen.” Angela's voice was still a little breathy, and Ana couldn't help but smile as she listened to how calm she was trying to be. “Things could've been much worse, I suppose. Still, having you walk in like that was, well, a little exciting. Right?”

“A little bit, yes. Though I think that Aleks had something else to say to us.” Ana grinned as she watched Aleks' mouth open and close, watched her face grow even redder as she stared down at the ground. It was always cute when they caught her by surprise. More than worth how terrifying it had been to be caught.

“Well, yeah. I just, you know, wanted to ask why no one had told me why Fareeha was up. And also let you know that when I went to see her, well...” Aleks gestured to the two of them, chuckling quietly. “Same thing as this, basically.” Ana raised an eyebrow as she heard Angela sigh, and turned in time to watch her wipe her hand across her labcoat.

“Good. Very good. I suppose I should go break that up.” Ana kept watching her as she went back to her computer, grabbing a tablet from next to it.

“We can hardly blame them. Look how we got after a few days apart.” She grinned at the exasperated look on Angela's face as she turned back to her.

“I don't blame them. Equally, neither of us had most of our bones shattered a few days ago. Neither of us are still going to be tender after that. It's not quite the same.” She walked to the door, stopping in front of Aleks and resting a hand one he stomach. “I might be a while. Got a few other tests I should really run before I stop for the night. Still, if you're willing to stay up for a while, we might be able to continue this?”

“Sounds good.” Ana glanced from Angela's smirk to Aleks' glowing cheeks, licking her lip and grinning. “Maybe we could set up something for you to walk in on. What do you think, Aleks?” She chuckled as Aleks' eyes went wide for a moment, before she started rubbing her head and smiling nervously.

“Yeah. Yeah, that'd be good. Just gotta make sure no one else walks in, don't we?” Ana watched Angela's hand grip Aleks' chin, pulling her down for a quick kiss.

“That's just part of the fun, isn't it?” She turned back to Ana, smiling and leaving Aleks mumbling behind her. “I'll be there soon. Don't wear her out without me.” With that, she was gone, door shut behind her. There was silence for a moment, before Ana burst into laughter, collapsing back against the wall as Aleks pouted.

“You're so easy to tease sometimes. You know that?”

“What else am I meant to do when you ambush me like that?” She across from the door, and Ana could feel her glaring down at her, could see her arms crossed over her chest. “I've been working hard all day, doing my best to keep things running. I don't deserve this kind of treatment.” Ana kept laughing, smiling up at her and resting a hand on her chest. She stayed like that till she'd finally managed to calm down, slowly resting more and more weight against her.

“I treat you exactly how you want to be treated. I'd think that's exactly what you deserve.” She tilted her head up a little, glancing to the side at the blush that was once again strengthening on Aleks' face. “Fareeha's doing well, by the way. I guess you didn't get much of a chance to check in with her.”

“Oh. Yeah, didn't get to talk much. Definitely seemed a bit more active, though.”Aleks smiled down at her, moving closer and taking hold of her hip. “So, do you want to head back up to your room, then? Get something set up for Angela?” Ana smiled back, moving a hand to her cheek, brushing it over her lips. She was already burning up, and they'd barely even gotten started yet. It was going to be a very, very fun night.

“How do you feel about spending the night tied up on my bed?”


	4. Chapter 4

Getting ready for something like this always felt like a big occasion for Ana. All of them always had something to do the next day, something that was keeping them busy till late in the night. It was rare to find enough time for them to take their time. Ana didn't really mind. Shewas more than happy to cuddle, to explore each other, to touch each other and see what came from it. She loved spending those kinds of moment with Aleks, with Angela. It was always a treat to be able to take a little more control, though.

“How are you feeling, my love?” Ana slowly walked around Aleks, fingers brushing around her stomach. She was standing, stripped naked and waiting for her instructions. It was almost a calming experience, having her like this. Having her so eager to do everything she was told.

“I'm feeling good.” Ana walked round to her front, looking up at the flush spreading over her cheeks. She prodded at her stomach, slowly dragging them higher, pressing through her softness. Aleks started to grin, biting her lip a little. “You having fun?” Of course she was. How could she not be when she had a woman like this in front of her? Ana place a hand on Aleks' chest, slowly pushing her back till her legs were against the side of the bed.

“Sit.” She sank down, staring up at Ana, still grinning. “Feeling a little cocky tonight, aren't you?” Ana stepped forward, sliding a leg between her knees, spreading her apart. She brushed her fingers across her cheek, watching her eyes get a little wider as she moved closer to her mouth. “Open up.” Aleks hesitated for a moment, before her lips parted. She kept staring into Ana's eye, not moving a muscle. “Good girl.” Ana brushed her finger over her lips, circling round them, feeling Aleks' breath wash over her hand. No need for them to rush.

Ana moved a little closer to her, pushing a finger further into her mouth. She felt Aleks shiver as she pressed down on her tongue, not moving as her other hand moved to her hair. She brushed over it, watching her eyes turn up as she her finger stayed still, holding her tongue in place. Ana smiled, pulling it back enough to let another join it, pushing further into her mouth. Not enough to hurt, not enough to make her gag. Just enough to get her to the edge. Enough that it was enjoyable for both of them.

“You can suck, if you'd like.” The effect was immediate. Aleks' lips closed around her, tongue circling over her fingers as she hummed quietly. “Such an eager girl.” Ana squeezed her hair a little tighter, holding her in place as she pressed her fingers harder into her tongue, slowly dragging them back. Finally, they were free of Aleks' lips, a string of drool connecting them for a moment before she shook it off. “Making a little bit of a mess, aren't you?”

“Not my fault.” Aleks' breathing was heavy, her face flushed. Ana licked her lips, gripping Aleks' head and pulling her towards the edge of the bed. “What should I do now?”

“Kneel. Kneeling would be good.” Aleks grinning, sinking to the floor and setting her hands on her thighs. Ana let go of her hair, walking past her and wiping her fingers over cheek. She felt Aleks shudder at the touch, and turned to sit on the edge of the bed, staring at her back. Her eye moved over the little scars littering it, wondering if she'd ever learn how they all got there. If Aleks could even remember. “Turn around.” Ana watched her shuffle on the floor, watching her face lift to hers as she knelt at her feet. She leaned forward a little, uncrossing her legs and pushing a foot between Aleks' knees. They slowly spread for her, letting her move forward till she was pressing down on her cock. Ana bit her lip, lifting her other leg and holding it in front of Aleks' mouth. “Do you want to keep going?”

“Yes.” Ana smiled as hands gripped her leg, holding it up as Aleks' mouth closed around her toes. Thumbs worked across her soles, rubbing circles into her as Aleks' tongue ran over her toes. Ana sighed, resting back on the bed, grinding her foot against Aleks' cock a little more forcefully, feeling her get a bit harder. Ana's hands moved to her chest, squeezing her breasts through her shirt. Aleks' tongue paused for a moment as she arched her back and moaned, and she almost started to laugh.

“You really are easily distracted, aren't you?” Ana didn't look up as she felt Aleks' lips press round her toes again, grinning at the ceiling. It was pleasant enough, the tongue moving over each of her toes, the fingers massaging her foot. Feeling Aleks hump at her as she rubbed over her length, running over the little bit of wetness that had built up at her tip. It wouldn't ever be the thing to get her off, but it could help her get Aleks closer. Help get her excited. That was more than enough reason to do it.

Aleks moaned against her foot, and Ana felt a hand move to her calf, squeezing and rubbing over it as the other continued to work at her foot. She squirmed her legs together, sighing softly as her mind started to drift. She'd gone seven years on her own, seven years of sleeping in ruins, of being alone. She welcomed the chance to be comfortable for a while. Welcomed the company. Welcomed the chance to be pampered a little. She kept rubbing along Aleks' length, feeling her squirm, hoping to return the favour as best she could. It wouldn't do not to reward such good service.

She felt Aleks' mouth lift from her, heard a quiet moan escape her throat. Another dot of wetness on her foot had Ana feeling quite please with herself. She had just a moment to think about how enjoyable it was to tease Aleks like this when she felt a hand push her leg away, felt the touch on the bottom of the other grow lighter. Ana lifted her head, watching a grin spread across Aleks' face as she held her foot up, starting to trace her thumb over it.

“Don't be a-” Her words were cut off by a shriek as Aleks started to tickle her in earnest. Ana twisted on the bed, laughing and screaming as Aleks traced her thumb over the sole of her foot. She'd known this had been a possibility. They'd discussed it before, she'd given it her OK. She knew well enough that Aleks liked to do these things sometimes. It didn't stop it from being a shock when it actually happened. Her chest was starting to ache, tears streaming down her face as she turned into the sheets, wheezing and jerking. Anyone else who tried this would have been kicked by now, but she couldn't even move her legs. Not when Aleks was holding her. There was only one thing she could do to stop it. “Enough!” The words barely escaped her lips, but Aleks let go of her immediately, let her curl up on the bed, giggling and panting for air.

“Too much for you?” Ana felt the bed shift beside her, rolled over to see Aleks grinning like a fool. She reached out to touch her face, forgetting what they were doing for a moment. Aleks was beautiful. She was bright and funny and caring. Ana hated to think about how much of that she'd lose on the path they was on. How much Fareeha would lose. Hated to think about how much the people she cared about had already lost. How much of herself she'd lost. “Did I go too far?” Ana watched her brow furrowing, watched her work at her lip. She smiled up at her, pushing herself up and Aleks over, not stopping till she was staring down at her. She pulled her hand back, unbuttoning her shirt, watching Aleks' eyes grow wider.

“Not at all. Just you being you. I've come to expect that by now.” She let her shirt fall away behind her, felt her hair falling over her shoulders, her back. “I'll find a way for you to make it up to me. Don't worry about that.” Aleks kept staring, eyes fixed to her face, breathing growing heavier. Ana's heart always fluttered a little when she saw that look. That excitement. That adoration. She wondered if Angela felt the same thing when Aleks looked at her like that. Ana leaned forward, placing her hands either side of Aleks' head. “You will make this up to me, won't you? No matter what it takes?”

“I will.” Ana smiled, lowering her head and closing her eyes as their lips met. Aleks pushed back into her a little, and Ana stroked a hand through her hair. It was short and rough and so, so far from her lips, so soft and warm against her. Opening a little, enough to let Ana's tongue slip past, to run over them, to brush against Aleks' own. She heard Aleks moan into her, and she shuddered, fighting the urge to rush ahead. Fighting the desire to start moving lower, to make Aleks squirm and shudder and scream her name. Instead, Ana pulled her head back, staring down at Aleks' smile and feeling another flush of warmth through her body.

She could still be tender, when she wanted to be. She could still be gentle. It was harder than in her youth, took more work. She sometimes had to pretend to be the person everyone else saw, had to pretend to be caring, to be good. Still, when that was what her loved ones saw, when that was the person they treated her as, it made it easier to be that person. Made it feel like it wasn't a lie.

“Roll over.” Ana sat back on her knees, feeling the mattress shift again as Aleks flipped hersolf onto her front. She looked down across her back again, eye settling on her ass as she pulled her patch away. She knew Aleks wouldn't look at her any differently without it, knew that the scar had never made her turn away. It still felt better to take it off when nobody was looking. Made her feel less vulnerable. She set the patch aside before inching closer to Aleks' body, placing a hand either side of her hips. She gave a quick pull, and Aleks followed suit, hips rising till Ana stopped them. “Good girl. Very good.”

“Thank you.” Ana moved behind her, smiling as she slid her hand down her thighs. Aleks was strong and powerful and muscular. She'd never deny that. She could be all that and still be soft and chubby.

“So many options.” Ana leaned down, planting a kiss at the base of Aleks' spine, feeling her shudder. Her mouth moved lower, kissing a path down one cheek and back up the other. Her hands moved back up her thighs to her ass, each gripping a cheek and spreading them apart. Ana could hear Aleks' breathing, could feel her muscles quivering, and she grinned. “Make as much noise as you need to. I want to know exactly how much your enjoying this.” Ana thought she heard the start of a response, but it trailed away to nothing as she pushed her face forward, dragging her tongue between Aleks' cheeks.

She squeezed her eye shut, gripping Aleks harder as her tongue moved down to her hole. She ran circles over it, making her squirm and shudder and mumble. Ana felt heat pooling in her stomach with each sound that escaped Aleks' mouth, felt herself start to get wetter. She wanted to flip Aleks over, to tear her trousers off and start riding her face. She wanted to grab a strap-on and fuck her till she was drooling and whimpering. She wanted to do everything she enjoyed, everything Aleks enjoyed. She wanted to lose herself for a while, to think of nothing but how good she was feeling. She couldn't do it yet, though. Not till Aleks was desperate. Not till she was on the edge.

Ana thought she might not be far away, judging from the noises she was making. Aleks was getting louder as she kept licking her, even if she seemed to be muffled by the sheets. Her body kept shaking, muscles clenching whenever she pushed a little harder with her tongue. Ana needed more from her, though. She needed to do more to her. She moved a hand to the inside of her thigh, slowly dragging it up, brushing past her cock on the way to her goal.

Angela had been the one to tell her about muffing, about how to do it. She'd been with a couple of trans women before Aleks, but it wasn't something that had come up. She could still remember the two of them standing over Aleks, talking about what she had to do. Could still remember Angela guiding her hand, helping her find the inguinal canal, both of them watching Aleks squirm as she did so. Ana thought back on that as she did it again, as a finger pushed inside her, running round her entrance. She wondered if Aleks was making the same face. She was certainly making the same noises, the same whimpering. Ana's thighs squirmed at the sound, and she couldn't help but moan as she kept licking at Aleks, kept fingering her. She wondered if she might just keep going, if she might just make Aleks cum there and then, when she heard the door shut behind her.

“It seems I'm interrupting something.” Ana had known Angela would be coming later. She'd left the door unlocked for exactly that reason. She'd still panicked when she'd heard Angela's voice, though. Still had that moment of horror at being caught. Ana opened her eye as she pulled back from Aleks, pushing herself up and looking down at her. Her face was glowing red, and she met Ana's gaze with a grin. Aleks was panting, sweat dripping down her face, and she wondered exactly how close she'd been. How much frustration Angela had just caused her.

Ana turned to look at Angela, and chuckled when she saw the smirk on her face. She wondered if it had been an accident at all. Angela had always been quiet when she'd wanted to be, always been able to sneak around. Ana wouldn't past her to have watched them for a while, to wait till things were almost finished to make her presence known. There was a little bit of a mean streak in her. Never anything cruel, never anything that came out when it wouldn't be appreciated. Still, it had been a bit of a surprise to discover. Hot too, if she was honest.

“We were only just getting started. Isn't that right?” She slapped a hand down on Aleks' ass, not hard, but enough to make her jump. Ana watched Angela lick her lips, watched her lab coat drop as she moved toward the bed. “Any thoughts on what we should do next, my dear doctor?”

“So many thoughts. Oh so, so many.” Ana watched her move to the other end of the bed, kneeling next to Aleks' head and gently stroking her hair. She saw Aleks grinning and biting her lip, eyes darting between the two of them. “We're going to have so much fun tonight. Are you ready for that?” Aleks kept looking between the two of them, sweat dripping down her face as her breathing slowed.

“I'll take anything you can throw at me.” Ana squeezed her ass a little harder, watched Aleks grin as Angela gripped her hair tighter, holding her in place and slowly leaning down. This really was turning into a wonderful night.


	5. Chapter 5

Ana stared down at Aleks, keeping a tight grip on her hair. She was panting and sweating and her skin was glowing red. It would have been so easy for Ana to push her head just a little bit lower. To push Aleks' mouth onto her clit and give them both something they wanted. She closed her eye, taking a deep breath as she pulled Aleks' head to the side, felt her lips press against her thigh.

“I'd never have expected you to be so impatient.” Ana opened her eye and looked up at Angela. She was smirking across at her, hands gripping Aleks' hips, pulling them off the bed a little. She was starting to sweat a little too, face starting to flush a little, and Ana heard a muffled moan escape Aleks as Angela pushed against her.

“I've waited for you to get this all set up just so, haven't I?” Ana's eye glanced down at the leather straps round Angela's hips, holding her strap-on in place. She looked at the rope criss-crossing Aleks' body, securing her arms against her back, something Angela had taken so much delight in setting up. Ana was always happy enough to keep things simple. A quick knot, some cuffs. Angela always wanted to make a show of things, though. Always wanted to go above and beyond. Ana couldn't deny that she enjoyed the results, but after all that effort, she wouldn't have Angela say she was anything other than patient.

“Don't tell me you didn't enjoy the show? I mean, Aleks certainly seems to appreciate it.” Ana looked back up at Angela's face, meeting her grin with a smile of her own. She'd become so much confident than she'd been when they first met. So much more comfortable with herself. So much happier. It had been a wonderful thing to see, even before they together.

“Oh, I'm not complaining. I'm just making sure you give me the credit I deserve.” Angela chuckled, and Ana felt teeth pushing into her thigh, felt Aleks sucking hard on her skin. She hissed a breath in through her teeth, warmth spreading through her body as she pulled Aleks away, leaving her head hanging between her legs. “You really are enjoying yourself, aren't you?”

“Yes.” Aleks couldn't look up at her, wasn't able to move enough to do that. All she could do was stay where Ana put her. She was panting, and Ana could feel each warm breath washing over her, making her body tingle, keeping her on edge. She didn't think it would take much to finish her once they got started. Not if she let it.

“You're still fine with the deal, right?” Ana looked up at Angela as she spoke, watched her squeeze Aleks' ass, making her gasp. “You don't get to cum till Ana does. You still think you'll be able to handle that?”

“Of course I can. It would just be easier if you let me do anything.” Ana snorted, squeezing her hair a little tighter, watching Angela spank her again. Aleks gasped again, and Ana reached down to brush a thumb over her lips.

“We said you could finish once I had. We never said it would be easy.” Ana felt Aleks' lips part, felt her start to suck on her thumb, and she sighed. She was always so eager to please. Always so eager to give them what they wanted. It felt cruel not to at least let her get started. She pulled her hand away from Aleks' mouth, resting it on her shoulder as the other pushed her forward. Ana felt her get to work immediately, felt Aleks' tongue dragging over her folds, and she bit her lip hard to stop herself from moaning.

“She's always so eager. I hope I don't distract her too much.” Ana looked up at Angela, watching her hand slip between her legs, feeling Aleks seize up for a moment. “There we go. Give her a bit more of a challenge. Really make her work for it.” Ana watched Angela's hips start to move a little faster, watched her face start to get a little redder, strands of hair sticking to her cheeks.

“You're beautiful.” Angela froze for a moment, face starting to glow even brighter before she looked down at Aleks' back, scratching her nails over it. Ana chuckled, closing her eye and letting her head hang back. Angela was always so easy to tease, so long as you knew the right thing to say. So long as you caught her at the right moment. Ana would have done it more, would have gotten Angela a little more flustered. It was hard to concentrate on that with Aleks between her legs, though. Hard to think straight when she was having so much fun.

Ana moved her feet to rest on Aleks' back, squeezing her thighs round her head. She heard Aleks moan as she did so, and tightened her grip in her hair, feeling heat surge through her body. It felt good, controlling Aleks like this. It felt good that Aleks trusted her and Angela enough to let them do this. A different kind of goodness than the feeling of Aleks' lips brushing over her clit, perhaps, but still good. Still something that made it all even more wonderful.

She let out a low moan as Aleks continued to lick and suck at her clit, body shuddering and muscles burning. Her fist tightened in Aleks' hair as she pulled her in closer, heard her muffled moans mixing with Angela's panting. Ana was getting close, feeling more and more like she was about to lose control. Her stomach was starting to tighten, muscles aching as her legs clenched around Aleks, as she struggled not to just fall back against the bed. It would be so easy to keep going. To let Aleks' push her over the edge, to lost herself in the pleasure. So easy to just finish.

Ana gritted her teeth, taking a deep breath as she spread her thighs and pulled Aleks' face back. She could feel her breath washing over her clit, could hear her panting and mumbling. The air felt cool against the sweat clinging to her body, and she concentrated on that, on each breath she took, feeling her body start to calm. She didn't want it to be over yet. She wanted to drag things out as long as she could.

“Did you cum?” Ana opened her eye at the sound of Angela's voice, staring at her face. She was even redder than before, smiling and gasping for air. Her body had stilled, hips pressed flush against Aleks, who was still panting between her thighs, so obviously right at her limit.

“Not yet. Not quite.”

“Ah. Well, in that case...” Angela trailed off, licking her lips as her hand dragged down Aleks' back, scratching a red trail into it. Ana watched that hand move lower, watched it slip between their two bodies. Aleks was whimpering and shuddering till that moment, before she let out a low, frustrated groan as Angela's hand reappeared. “Just had to turn off the vibrations. Couldn't let her finish too soon, could we?”

“Please.” Aleks' voice was quieter than normal, and Ana looked down at her with a grin. She was still panting for breath, still not able to look up at her. She pushed her thighs together again for a moment, giving her a little squeeze and feeling the sweat pouring down her cheeks. “Please don't stop.” She was adorable when she was like this, so desperate, so needy. It was almost enough to make Ana think she didn't want to be teased like this, even if she hadn't said the safe word yet.

“Don't you remember the agreement? You don't finish till I finish, and I haven't finished yet.”

“Can't do anything about that if you won't let me eat you out.” Ana heard Angela snort as she moved hand to cup Aleks' face, stroking a thumb over her cheek. It was hard not to start laughing herself. Keeping everything serious might have been stressful if it wasn't so fun. As it was, she kept stroking Aleks' cheeks, getting herself full under control before she said anything else.

“Honestly, you get so mouthy sometimes.” Ana looked up at Angela, watched her lean down to start kissing across Aleks' shoulders. She smiled, moving her thumb back over to Aleks' lips as she shuddered between her thighs.

“We could always stop teasing you. No need to push yourself. Neither of us will judge you if you can't handle the challenge.” She watched Angela move a hand to Aleks' ass, squeezing a cheek hard, making her whimper again.

“Of course, of course. No shame in admitting defeat, after all. Nothing wrong if you can't keep up with us.”

“Didn't say that.” Aleks' breathing was getting heavy again, and Ana grinned as she met Angela's gaze. “I can keep going as long as I need to. As long as you want me to. Just saying, not my fault you haven't cum.”

“I never said it was. I just need to take a break now and then, is all. It makes it all much more enjoyable.” Ana sighed as she felt Aleks' tongue brush drag over her thumb. She'd calmed down enough that Aleks would need to work to get her close again, and she really couldn't see a reason not to start on that straight away. “I think I've recovered enough. Are you ready to start again, too?”

“Hmm.” Angela pushed herself from Aleks' body, and Ana grinned at the marks left across her shoulders. No wonder she'd been whimpering so much. She saw one of Angela's hands lift up a little, and felt Aleks jerk as it smacked hard against her ass. “Yes. I think I'm ready to get things going again. No point in wasting time, now that we're sure Aleks can really handle it.” Ana thought she heard Aleks start reply, but it was cut off by a moan as Angela started the vibrations up again. Ana didn't wait, pulling her mouth back into place, biting as Aleks started licking and sucking at her labia.

It was tempting to close her eye again, to fall back and let everything wash over her. She didn't want to miss the show, though. Angela hands were scratching over Aleks' back as she thrust into her, face screwing up as her breathing grew heavier. Ana hadn't expected her to be the one to finish first, but it was looking more and more likely. It was funny. It was cute. It was something Ana wanted to help with as much as possible.

She kept a hand in Aleks' hair and leaned forward, slipping her other around Angela’s neck. She pulled her in closer, stopping when their lips were nearly touching, holding her there. She couldn't see much of Angela's face, part of it obscured by blonde hair, the rest by her own blind spot. It didn't really matter. Ana could feel each breath against her lips. She could feel Angela's skin burning where she touched her. She could see a hand pushing down onto Aleks' back as Angela tried to hold herself up, could feel the other slipping round the back of her own head, running through her hair.

Ana closed her eye and pulled her in for the kiss. Angela moaned as they touched, lips parting a little as she pushed against her. Her body shuddered as Aleks started sucking on her clit again, and she moved her hand up through Angela's hair, gripping it tight and making her gasp. Making her freeze. She could feel herself starting to get closer again, warmth pooling in her stomach, muscles starting to burn from the effort of holding herself up. She wouldn't stop herself again, wouldn't pull back. Still, she was sure that she could get Angela to finish first.

Ana pulled her in harder, lips pressing together one least time before she tilted her head back, kissing a path to her neck. She could hear Angela gasp past her ear as she nipped at her neck, could feel Aleks moaning against her, tongue pushing through her folds again. Her thighs squeezed a little tighter, and she sucked hard against Angela's skin, listening to her whimper, feeling her shake. Ana kept moving around to her ear, biting down on her lobe, flicking her tongue over it. Angela whimpered again, and she felt the hand in her hair slip down her back, clawing weakly at her. She smiled, kissing gently at her ear, trying to keep her voice as low as she could.

“Cum for me.” Ana didn't have to wait any longer. Didn't have to do any more work. Angela's body stiffened against her, and she mumbled into her ear, nonsense interspersed with declarations of love. Ana kept kissing her ear, kept holding Aleks against her, feeling her own orgasm following soon behind. It was too much for her to hear Angela cum, to make her feel this good and not let herself go too. Ana felt kisses against shoulder as Aleks' lips pursed round her clit, sucking hard on her, tongue running over her. Her thighs squeezed together tight, pulling at their hair as her face tilted forward into Angela's neck. Each breath was an effort, her chest burning as heat flooded her body, as her muscles started to ache, as she finally hit her peak. Pleasure overwhelmed her, a low moan escaping her lips as she shuddered. She said Aleks' name, Angela's name, over and over, head rolling back as her body stiffened, as-

Pain. Ana's eye shot open, a quiet gasp escaping her lips. She couldn't move. Could barely breathe. Her back had gone, muscles gone into spasm, every little moment where she wasn't perfectly still making her want to cry. It had happened a few times before. One of the prices of old age, of living a life that had pushed her to her limits. Never like this, though. Never as humiliating as this. Aleks was still licking at her, still sucking at her clit, and she would have screamed if she had the breath. Every little touch felt good for a moment, before her body shuddered and her shoulders tore open again. She squeezed her eye shut, concentrating on each breath, fighting hard to ignore the pain, to get a single word out.

“Stop!” It was louder than she wanted, more desperate, a further humiliation. It worked, though. Aleks' efforts ended immediately, and she felt Angela pull away, felt hands cupping her cheeks.

“What's wrong?” All of the edge that had been in her voice was gone. Angela was in doctor mode now, and Ana hated it. Hated that she'd ruined the moment.

“Back. Can't move.” She gritted her teeth, letting out a cry as she forced her head down, looking at the frown on Angela's face. She watched her move back, hands moving to the ropes binding Aleks, undoing them faster than she'd thought possible. “Sorry for this. Killed the mood.”

“You've got nothing to be sorry about.” Aleks pulled her hands free, gently placing them either side of Ana's cheeks as she sat up, frowning down at her. “Has this happened before? Is there anything we should do?”

“It's nothing. Just have to walk it off.” She tried to push herself up, slowly moving her arms to either side, hissing from the effort. Each little budge sent another jolt of pain through her, made her back pull tighter. Before she could get much farther, she felt a hand on her shoulder, and slowly looked up at Angela's grimace, trying to move her head as little as possible.

“No. No, you're going to rest right now, and I'm going to get you a heat blanket. Of course, we could just use my staff, but I feel like you'll turn that down, won't you?” Ana raised an eyebrow, struggling with even that. Looking up at her had been a mistake. She didn't want to look back down. Didn't want to move her head at all, if she could avoid it.

“It's a simple thing. Just need to rest a little. Nothing too strenuous. A walk won't hurt.” Ana gritted her teeth and tried to move to the edge of the bed, but Angela didn't have to do much to hold her in place. A hand on her shoulder was more than she wanted to push against. She knew she could have forced her way through the pain. She'd done it before, after all. Done it more times than she could count.

“I'll get the blanket. You'll rest on it, you'll go to sleep, and you'll feel better. Deal?” Ana glanced up at her again, cheeks flushing. Angela was right. Logically, she knew that resting would be the sensible thing. That there was no reason to try and keep pushing herself. It didn't stop her from wanting too, though. Didn't stop the way Angela so quickly started acting like her doctor from being embarrassing. “You can get up if you want. I won't stop you. Still, you're going to be in a lot of pain that you could easily avoid. You've always struck me as being much more sensible than that, Ana.”

“Wouldn't have let me have so much responsibility if I wasn't, would they?” She was being played. Angela knew that she was stubborn, she'd know it for years. It wasn't necessarily something she took pride in. Her patience and determination, perhaps. Her intelligence, certainly. Her ability to read a situation, to make the right call. She'd always taken a great deal of pride in that, even when she'd taken it from nothing else. “That blanket sounds nice. I suppose I can let you get it for me, if you insist.” She felt Aleks' hand on her other shoulder, gripping her gently as she lowered herself onto the bed. Angela was smiling, leaning over to brush her hair from her face.

“I'll be back soon. Just let Aleks take care of you till then, OK? No need to strain those old bones.” Ana tried to retort as she her back touched the bed, but another jolt of pain left her silent as Angela left the room. She closed her eye, trying to slow her breathing, trying to relax herself as much as possible. It was hard when every little movement made her body seize, made her feel like she was going to snap. Still, Aleks' hand moving her arm was certainly a welcome distraction.

“Does this happen often?” Ana forced her eye open. Aleks was leaning over, just within her vision. She started to turn her head, regretting it almost immediately. More bolts shooting into her shoulders, leaving her hissing and gasping for air. She felt Aleks' fingers slip through hers, saw her frown start to deepen again. “Can I help?  Is there anything I can do till Angela gets back?”

“It's fine. Just an old injury. Flairs up sometimes. Nothing to worry about.” There were more things that could have caused this than she could ever hope to count. Training accidents, battle wounds, the simple strain of old age. Things might have been different if she'd even given herself a chance to rest. If she hadn't pushed through everything, hadn't been so desperate to avoid even a hint of weakness. She didn't want to be so stubborn now, so closed off. Wanting it didn't make it easy. “If you could just stay here for now, that would be good. I like having you around, if you hadn't figured that out yet.”

“I'm flattered. I'm sure all the girls will be jealous that Captain Amari has her eye on me.” Ana chuckled, the sound cut off by a fresh surge of pain that was almost enough to draw a tear to her eye. She was grateful that Aleks couldn't see it, grateful to feel lips pressing against her other cheek. “You were amazing tonight, you know. Shame you got hurt.”

“It's a risk you take when you work as hard as I do.” She heard Aleks chuckle, felt her body shake for a moment, and bit back a laugh of her own. Too painful to be worth it. Much too painful. Instead, she lay as still as possible, letting Aleks' breath brush over her skin, letting a hand run over her stomach. Her patch was still off. A few months ago, she would have been uncomfortable with someone seeing her like that. Even the thought of someone seeing that scar had made her feel ill, had pushed her to the verge of panic. She'd worried how Aleks would react the first time it happened, dreading the moment when she flinched away. It never came. There was nothing so trite as a kiss over the scar, a gentle touch. No promise that she was still beautiful. Everything else that happened that night was enough proof that her opinion in that regard hadn't changed. She just asked questions. How it had happened. How it felt. Same as they both did for every other scar they found on each other. It had been nice. It had been sweet.

Angela didn't take long to return with a blanket. Ana tried not to move much as it was slipped under her, trying to take a little pride in the fact that she didn't actually cry as she pushed herself up from the bed. The heat helped once it started, though. Helped keep her comfortable, helped stop every little movement of her head from being completely agonising. Having both her lovers by her side was also a helpful distraction from the pain. Thinking about Aleks' fingers trailing patterns over her stomach, about Angela's hand stroking through her hair. It all helped her relax. It all helped the pain fade just enough to let her slowly drift to sleep.


	6. Chapter 6

“You know, if you don't tell me how it happened, my guesses will just keep getting sillier. This is only hurting you.” Ana slowly turned her head to Reinhardt, doing her best to keep a straight face through the pain. He'd seen Aleks helping her over to the sofa that morning, and he hadn't wasted much time in commenting on how she seemed so much stiffer than she'd been the night before..

“I'm injured. I'm an injured war hero, and you attack me like this. It's just shameful behaviour.” His laughter boomed through the room, and she couldn't help join him for a moment before it was cut off by a bolt through her back. She'd missed him. The only person she'd missed more had been her own daughter. He'd been one of her closest friends for years, and getting another shot at that was more than she'd ever really hoped for.

“Alright, war hero. Just remember, you brought this on yourself.” Ana watched him lean back against the sofa, arms crossed behind his head, a smile stretching from ear to ear. “You set up an elaborate pulley system so that you could lift Aleks into the air. You had the ropes wrapped round your shoulders, and were just holding her up in the air while you did your thing to her. Then, Angela walked in, spooked you, and boom. Messed up back.” She stared at him in silence, amazed that the smile didn't flicker for even a moment.

“How on earth would I set up a pulley system? Why would I use the to pick up my girlfriend? Why are you like this?” Reinhardt shrugged, looking up at the ceiling and grinning.

“You get things done if you want to. We both know exactly why you'd be restraining one your girlfriend. And, to be quite honest, I learned a lot of this from watching you.” He turned to face her, looking her in the eye before sticking out his tongue and blowing a raspberry. Ana laughed, gasping and falling against the sofa as a fresh burst of pain rocked her body. She heard his laughter start up again as she tried to still herself again, tried to find a position where that wasn't completely agonizing.

“Ass. You are a complete ass, do you know that?” He nodded, and she groaned again, closing her eyes and slowly moving a hand to push at his face. “I just put my back out. We're old, my friend. These things happen. Don't need to do much to hurt ourselves these days, do we?”

“I mean, we don't. I'm still reasonably confident that you were doing a lot. You're always doing a lot. Might have been gone for a few years, but that hasn't changed.” Ana opened her eye, looking up at him, at his strained smile. She hated seeing that look. Hated how often she'd seen it since she'd come back. “Alright. I'm done. Not sure how much more teasing you'll be able to take.”

“Such a gentleman.” Her hand fell to his shoulder, and she gave him a gentle squeeze. A fresh spasm in her shoulder immediately filled her with regret. “How are you feeling? Got something you want to talk about?” Reinhardt looked down at her, biting at his lip as he rubbed the back of his head.

“I'm doing fine. Just been thinking about some things.” He kept staring at her, occasionally glancing at her hand as a much more natural smile started to grow on his face. “How much will it hurt if you move your arm right now?”

“Enough that I won't be doing it for a while.” Reinhardt's face screwed up, and he covered his mouth, laughing as quietly as she'd ever heard, which was still louder than most people she'd ever met. “So, we can keep laughing about the terrific pain I'm in, or we can talk about what's bothering you. The choice is yours, I suppose.”

“It's so hard, though. You know I've never been one for making the big decisions.” Ana raised her brow, keeping as still as possible as his smile grew wider. She'd have to move at some point, of course, but that didn't mean she couldn't put it off as long as possible. “Just been thinking about the last few years. Losing everyone. Having you all come back. It's been odd. It's been difficult.”

“Things have been strange for all of us.” She'd been shocked when she'd found Jack still alive. She'd been angry. She couldn't begrudge Reinhardt the same feelings, even if she knew she'd made the right choice. Perhaps not for anyone else, but for her. “Do you think it would have been different if I'd stayed?”

“You'd have died in the blast, most likely. Or perhaps they would have made you retire with me. You're not that much younger, after all. Either way, nothing would have changed. Things would have happened almost exactly as they did.” Ana almost felt relieved by that. She'd spent nights trying to figure out how she could have made a difference, how she could have changed Overwatch's path if she'd still been around. She hadn't found it. Knowing that she wasn't alone in that felt good, in a way. “I still wish you'd told me. Something to know you were alive, even if you weren't coming back. I understand why you told Fareeha. I just wish you'd told me, too.”

“I wanted to. I did. I just… I couldn't.” Fareeha had been different. She couldn't bear to keep her in the dark, even if she wasn't coming back. Leaving Reinhardt alone had hurt, but he would have gone hunting for her. It would have been a crusade. Better for him to not to know. Better not to drag him back into that life.

“I know. We've been over it. Not even holding a grudge these days.” He smiled wide, covering her hand with his own. “We almost lost people. Lena. Jesse. Fareeha. It's been a while since we've been through that. It's just brought me back, is all.” She felt his hand squeezing down around hers, watched his smile turn to a frown.

“I'd almost forgotten what it was like, you know. Too many years working alone.” She'd had a few partners, on occasion. People she'd done jobs with, when it was necessary. It wasn't the same, though. She hadn't cared about them. Hadn't known them. It was good to come back. Good to have a team again. More than worth the dread that twisted her up when she watched them throw themselves into danger. “I don't know what I would've done if they hadn't made it. If Angela hadn't been there to save them.”

“It's impossible to know, really. I want to say that I'd keep going. That I'd keep fighting for what our people believed in, that I'd fight for their memory. Not really how it went last time, though.” Ana gripped his shoulder a little harder, forcing a smile to match the one he was struggling to hold.

“I don't know how we managed to deal with it for as long as we did. It's a wonder we're back here at all.” There'd been nothing else that she could have done. No other path she could bring herself to take, even when she had the freedom to do whatever she wanted. She knew that. It was just hard to admit it, even to someone who was in the same boat.

“Fareeha's here. Jesse, Lena, Angela. My family. Seems more than enough reason for me to come back. More than enough for you, too.” Ana turned ahead, feeling the sofa shift as she moved closer to her, slipping an arm round her shoulder. He was right, in a way. She wouldn't have come back were it not for Fareeha, though. She still would have been fighting, even if it was just her own little war. Picking up bounties, going after groups making trouble for Helix. That had been enough for her. Probably would have been enough for as long as long as she could stay close to Fareeha.

“It is. It's good, being part of a team again. Being back in Fareeha's life. It's good to be back with you.” She tried to keep herself steady as she slipped her arm round Reinhardt's waist, biting her lip to get through the little jolts of pain. She'd always liked cuddling him. Always liked being close to him like this. The fact that her back felt like it wanted to rip itself in half wasn't going to stop her from doing it. “I'm worried about Fareeha. Worried about all of them.”

“I know. It's hard, watching them fight. Watching them get hurt. Not being able to do anything about it.”

“It's more than that. If they get hurt, Angela can fix help. We can protect them, drag them home, keep them safe. Can't protect them from what happened to us.” Ana felt the hand on her shoulder squeeze a little harder, felt her stomach knot. She closed her eye, breathing in slowly, trying to head off the panic before it got a hold of her. “I didn't come home. I'm not who I was. I'll never be her again.”

“Ana.” His cheek brushed against the top of her head, nuzzling against her. She kept her eye squeezed shut, trying to concentrate on his warmth. On the arm holding her tight, the body pressed against her. On the little sparks of pain stabbing into her shoulders. Anything to help her power through. Anything to help her power through.

“There's nothing I can do to stop Fareeha from going down that path. She's doing what she knows is right, and no one could have stopped me from doing the same. All I can do is follow and watch her slowly wear away.” She could barely remember what she'd been like before the Crisis. Everything was hazy, everything seemed fake, an Ana she'd created to fill the gap. One that wasn't so angry. One that didn't have to fight herself to love the people she loved. “She shouldn't have to do this. None of them should. We should have done things right. We shouldn't have settled, not when it let Vishkar take over cities. Not when it let Helix form their own armies. We let all the good we did go to waste, and she's going to pay the price. They all will.”

“We can help them. Help them make things right again. Help them figure out how to survive when it all becomes too much. Give them the support that we should have had.” Ana could feel Reinhardt turning to her, could feel his other arm wrapping round her body. It'd been too long since they'd been like this. Close and gentle and vulnerable. She hadn't realised how much she'd missed it. “You're still you, old friend. All that goodness, all that determination, all that joy. It's still there. You didn't lose it. It's just buried a little deeper now.”

“The same goes for you, old friend.” He was quieter than when they'd first met. The laughter and the boisterousness was forced more than it had ever been before, even if no one else could see it. He was still him, though. Still generous. Still brave. Still among the best of them. No reason why she couldn't be the same, even if it was hard to see it in that moment. “We'll fight by their side to the end. We'll show them where we fell so they don't have to. And if we're lucky, maybe we'll be around long enough to right at least some of our wrongs.” His chest shook as he chuckled, and she smiled as she took hold of an arm, squeezing her fingers round it.

“You'd think this was our last adventure together, the way you're talking.”

“I doubt I'm going to die in my bed. Don't tell me you think you'll manage it?” Ana turned her head up as slowly as she could, opening her eye to look at the smile plastered across his face.

“I'm not so foolish as that. Still, you were gone for years. Once we're done here, I figure you owe me a road trip. The two of us, travelling across the world, fighting bad guys and being heroes. Can even bring your girls if they're willing to squeeze into the van. Can't die till we've sorted that out.” She started chuckling, watching him snort as another surge of pain cut it short. Ana squeezed down on his arm as hard as she could mange, glaring at him as he tried to hold back his laughter.

“You're an ass, even if you're an ass with some decent ideas. Provided we get to go to Hawaii at some point, I think we can consider it a plan.”

“You see, this is why you're my best friend. Always able to appreciate how excellent my ideas are. Always able to improve them. Now, enough of the sad talk, and enough of the future. Let's just watch some stupid films and stop thinking for a while, yeah?” Ana nodded a little, watching him slide from the sofa and go hunting for the remote. She'd never known how he'd always been able to pull her out of her moods. How he'd always known the right thing to say to raise her spirits a little. It was just another one of the little things she hadn't realised she'd missed about him. Not until she had it back in her life again. It was something she had no intention of missing out on again. Not while she had any choice about it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ana and Reinhardt as sad best friends is pretty good shit imo.


	7. Chapter 7

“So, am I finally clear this time, or do I have another day of leisure to look forward to?” Ana sat back in her seat, watching Angela tap something onto her tablet. She'd had a few days of rest so far, and it was starting to get to her. Watching movies with Reinhardt had been fine for a while, but the last time she'd gone this long without training, she'd been shot. That Angela had insisted on this long out for putting her back out while having sex was somewhat irritating. That Reinhardt was teasing her relentlessly about it made it significantly worse.

“Well, I'd prefer that you ease yourself back into things, but yes. You can start training again. You can start doing any number of activities, though once again, I'd suggest nothing too strenuous for a couple of days.” Ana felt a little heat rise to her cheeks as she heard Angela chuckle, eyes drifting to her backside as she turned to her desk. Reinhardt hadn't been the only tease while she'd been injured. She wasn't exactly unhappy at watching Angela and Aleks have their fun, especially not when both were so eager to put on a show for her. Still, a few days without active participation of any sort had left her feeling needy, and she was sorely tempted to see if Angela wanted to take a second shot at things in her office. The only thing really holding her back was the knowledge that she wasn't the only one being signed off that day.

“Fareeha's getting discharged, isn't she? You haven't found any other issues?” Angela turned back around, smiling and glancing down at her tablet.

“The machines are still running the final scans, but I can't see anything coming up. She should be out of here in a couple of hours. I think Lena's coming to pick her up. She seemed quite excited about it.” Ana watched Angela set her tablet aside before walking towards her, smile growing wider on her face. “I understand that you don't feel that a little back pain is a good enough reason for it, but I could still give you a look over. Little bit of surgery, and we could fix up whatever old wound it is that you managed to pull.”

“Not something I'm interested in at the moment. I've no particular desire to go through all that for something that's resolved by a couple of days rest.” Ana wasn't averse to Angela's technology. A quick recovery from grievous wounds was not something she’d ever complain about. It wasn't even that it seemed a little excessive to use it to fix a painful back, though it was an argument that she'd happily make. It just felt wrong to get rid of those old scars, those old strains. They were part of her history, little markers to show what she'd been through, just like her missing eye. So long as they didn't stop her from doing what she needed to, then she had no desire to fix them. She took hold of Angela's hand, giving it a squeeze and grinning up at her. “You looking for another project now that your last patient is leaving?”

“Oh, I'm sure one of them will hurt themselves and end up in here soon enough. Even if they don't, I've always got plenty of work to be getting on with. I'm not just here to put you all back together.” Angela took a step back, letting go of her hand and reaching out for her tablet again. “I've got some plans for things we could be doing. Helping out clinics, looking at ways to distribute the Caduceus technology to people who can't afford it through the normal channels. Winston's got contacts, and we're already breaking international law by being here. I don't see why I should pay much attention to copyright at this point.”

“I can't imagine it will take much to convince Fareeha to put some effort into making that happen. I'm a little surprised you haven't already got something like that started up, if I'm honest. Your company still trying to protect it's intellectual property?” Angela had always talked about making sure everyone had access to her technology, even when she'd first joined Overwatch. There'd been restrictions in place on how it could be used, agreements between Overwatch and the hospital that had trained her, things to ensure their patents were protected. Restrictions that had obviously continued to apply once Overwatch had been shut down.

“It's not my company. My parents were an important part of it, but it was never really theirs either. I doubt that they'd approve of anything that values profit so much more than human life.” Angela sighed, face tilting up to the ceiling. “Having me head out to natural disasters and war-zones to save lives was good publicity. Giving the technology to poor hospitals that needed it was a waste of money. Honestly, one of the reasons I came back was the chance to finally find a way to get around that.”

“Well, I'm sorry that we got in the way of it before. Glad you're finally getting a chance to make this work.” Ana pushed herself to her feet, moving up behind Angela and slipping her arms round her waist. Angela seemed to relax in her arms, and she leaned forward, nuzzling against her shoulder. “Do you want anyone to be with you when you set your plans out? Want any support?” Angela turned to her, a smile growing on her face. Ana moved in for a quick kiss, lips touching for a moment before they broke apart again.

“I wouldn't mind it. I was planning on talking about it before I discharged her, but Aleks is doing a pretty good job of monopolising her time for the moment. It seems I'm not the only one planning out our next steps.”

“I might go interrupt them, if you're still going to be working for a while. See if I can get another sneak peak at our future plans.” Angela kept smiling at her, slowly backing up to her desk.

“Well, I won't get in the way of that. Still, perhaps you'd like to come back here once your done? I was thinking that we could have a little fun, now that you're finally back in working order.” Ana watched her reach down into the lowest drawer on her desk, biting her lip at the sight of the rope she pulled from it. “I was thinking you might like to just lay back and let me do the work this time. Don't want you pushing yourself too hard, after all.”

“So, where does the rope come in to that?” Ana's gaze trailed back up to Angela's face in time to see her lick her lips and step forward, dropping the rope back in the drawer.

“Well, I think it'll be the only way to make sure that you really do let me do the work. You can still tell me and Aleks what to do. You'll just be stuck with your words, is all. No hands. No moving.” Angela reached up to her face, and she closed her eye as she felt fingers over her cheek. It would be unusual, giving control over to someone else. Still, the idea was a little exciting, and she'd still be in charge. A little bit of rope wouldn't be the thing to change that. “Any thoughts? Any opinions?”

“I think I'll be here later. I think we can plan this more then, but I'm interested in the idea.” Ana turned into Angela's hand, gently kissing her palm before backing up towards the door and opening her eye. “I also think I'm going to leave before you distract me much more. Don't want to be thinking about you too much when I'm talking about the future of our organisation.”

“You get used to it. I've had to fight off your distractions for a long time. It's only gotten worse over the past few months.” She slowly sat in her chair, smiling up at Ana and smoothing out her lab coat. “We'll make this a night to remember. “Go see your daughter. Go see Aleks. Once your done with that, we'll make this a night worth remembering. Might even get through it without injuring you.”

“You really are terribly mouthy. Not that I don't enjoy it, but still.” Ana pushed open the door behind her, still staring at Angela as she backed into the hall. “I'll be back in a while. I'll see if Aleks wants to come, too.”

“It saves me a little work, I suppose.” Angela gave a little wave as she moved a hand to the door handle, smile still spread across her face. “Love you.”

“I love you, too.” With that, Ana closed the door behind her, squeezing her eye shut and taking a deep breath. She started walking along the hall, trying to get herself ready to see her daughter, trying to think of anything other than what she'd been doing that night.

It was not amongst her more successful endeavours. Still, thoughts on what her partners could do for her were quickly banished once she reached Fareeha's room. The door was sitting ajar, and she stood outside it for a little while, listening to the two of them talking. Ana felt her stomach knot the longer she waited, feeling almost like she was listening in on one of the meetings she'd had with Jack before everything had fallen apart. Talk of locations they should look to target, of how many people should be in the strike teams. Plans on how to avoid civilian casualties. They'd been fighting before now, and they'd all talked about similar things in their meetings, in their planing sessions. This was different, though. Up till now, they'd been heading off the attacks made by Talon or others. They'd been defending people who couldn't defend themselves. This was an offensive. This was them bringing the fight to Talon.

“Hope I'm not interrupting anything important.” Ana pushed through the door, watching Aleks and Fareeha freeze as she closed it behind her. Her eye danced between their faces as she waited for them to continue. “If this really is a private thing, then I can leave. Still, I'm not sure there are that many secrets that we need to keep from each other at this point.” She sat down near Fareeha's bed glancing at the tablet in her hands. There were a list of names and locations on the screen, though she couldn't see much of it before the screen went black.

“Not a secret, mother. We were just making some plans. Trying to figure out how to go forward once I'm fully recovered.” Ana nodded, leaning back in her chair and glancing between the two of them.

“So, does that plan include an attack against Talon? Because that's what it sounded like before you both stopped talking.” She sat still, watching Fareeha look to Aleks for a moment before sighing and turning back to face her.

“It's one of the things we're considering, yes. It's just an idea at the moment, but it's one we're working on. It's something we're planning on bringing up with the others soon. See what input everyone has.”

“We can't just keep reacting.” Ana looked up at Aleks as she spoke, watching her tap away at the tablet in her hand. She sounded like she did when they were in the field. Serious. Stern. So self-assured that it was easy to believe she was right. “We walked into a trap this time, and it'll happen again if we don't change how we do this. We have to take the fight to them if we want to make any headway. We have to put them on the defensive for once.”

“So, do you know where you'll be attacking? If it's in a populated area? If there'll be civilians working there? How you'll be getting around any local law enforcement that will most likely end up getting in the way?”

“We have a few different locations we could go for. Winston's been contacting some of his sources, finding bases. Some of them are in cities. If we decide that they're the best places to attack, then we'll make plans on how to keep people safe. How to deal with any local forces in the area.” She watched Fareeha push herself a little higher in her bed, watched her glance between herself and Aleks. “This isn't something we're rushing, but it's something we have to do. We push back against Talon, and it might make them withdraw for a while. Might make it harder for them to carry out their plans.”

“I know. I'm not arguing that this is the wrong decision. I just want to make sure that we're all looking at this clearly. That you're aware of exactly what we're walking in to.” People could get hurt if they did this. People who weren't involved, who were just trying to live their lives. There was no way to avoid that risk, and she wasn't sure there was a way to deal with the aftermath. She'd certainly never found it.

“We are. This isn't our first time. The concern is appreciated, though.” Ana felt Aleks' hand squeeze her shoulder, saw a small smile form on Fareeha's face as she spoke. “We're grateful for the input. Once we've got a more solid plan in place, we'll bring it before everyone. See what they all think of it. Decide how to continue from there.”

“Alright. So long as you're giving it careful thought, there's not much more I can ask of you.” She lifted a hand to Aleks', running her fingers over it and grinning at her daughter. “Just be sure to keep me involved. I might be getting old, but I can still offer a bit of advice. Not ready to retire yet.”

“Of course. We wouldn't have you here if we didn't think you could help.” Fareeha reached out to her, smiling even wider as she took hold of her hand. “Aleks, could you go see if Angela's ready to discharge me yet? It'll be good to finally do a bit of work that doesn't need me to lay in bed.” Ana reached out to grab Aleks' arm as she headed to the door, leaning back to grin up at her. She licked her bottom lip, taking a moment to brush her fingers over Aleks' skin before letting go of her.

“Right. Of course. I'll, uh… yeah.” Ana watched her cheeks glow as she left the room, fighting back a laugh as she heard her daughter sigh.

“I don't know what you did there, but it'd be nice if you didn't distract my second in command when I'm asking her to do something for me.”

“It's not my fault that so many people find me so captivating. I'm just a fascinating woman.” She looked down at Fareeha, chuckling quietly as her daughter rolled her eyes. “It's good that you're getting out today. Never nice to be stuck somewhere like this too long.”

“I've been in worse hospitals that this. Honestly, being the one in here's preferable to having to visit someone else. It's easier to deal with when you're not worrying about them.” Ana couldn't argue with that. She'd never enjoyed being in hospital, never enjoyed being injured, but it was better than watching someone else. Better than wondering whether someone she cared about would pull through.

“From what I can see, you've spent plenty of time worrying after the rest of the team. There's more to all of this than just an attack on Talon, isn't there?” She held Fareeha's gaze, watching a smile start to grow on her face.

“It's a start. I doubt very much it will be the end of it. Talon aren't the only ones out there hurting people. Vishkar's doing it's part, though I don't think we'll be able to use the same tactics to go after them. Something to figure out when the time comes.” Ana looked down at the tablet as Fareeha tapped at it, watching more maps flash across it. “We might have another base in Korea soon. Hana's been talking to people, trying to arrange somewhere suitable. Next time that omnic comes out of the sea, we'll be joining in the fight. I'll talk to Torbjörn about it, see if he has any ideas about how we could take it down permanently.”

“Well, there's a reasonable chance that he helped design the thing. Can't think of anyone better suited to destroying it.” Ana looked up from the screen, watching Fareeha stare at it intently. “You're aiming high. We don't have that many people to work with. They're all good, but we're going to be giving everything we can on every single mission.”

“We'll find more people. Other groups to work with, groups whose goals align with ours, who are trying to help people. We aren't the only ones looking to make the world a better place.” Fareeha's eyes were bright, her smile growing wider the more she spoke. Ana thought about when Overwatch was founded, about the dreams she'd had when the Crisis had ended. She wasn't sure when they'd changed, how long it had taken for her to be worn down. “We'll find out what people need from us, what we can offer them. Contacts or technology or medical help. Fire-power. Whatever they need from us that we can give them. We can't do this alone, and I've got no intention of trying.”

“You've been planning this for a while, haven't you?” She wondered when her daughter's dreams would grow smaller. When she'd lose the will to give her all, to put so much of herself into the fight. If she'd end up like Reyes, full of rage, lashing out at the world. If there was anything she could do to stop that. “I'm with you. I'll always be with you, all the way to the end, no matter how hard things get. No matter what you need, I'll be here to help. Just remember that.”

“I will. It's good to have you by my side.” Ana felt Fareeha's hand close round her own, and she smiled. She couldn't stop her daughter from putting herself in harms way, from sacrificing her own well-being for the good of others. She could still help her. She could still be strong for her. She could enjoy all the happy little moments she'd missed for so long. She could do that.

“I wouldn't say it's a dream come true, but it's good to be by your side too. You're turning out to be a fine leader.”

“That's hardly surprising. I never lacked for role models on that front.” Fareeha smiled, and Ana chuckled, giving her hand a quick squeeze. It had been too long since she'd spent time with her daughter like this. Too long since the two of them had been so honest with each other. It was good to finally be back here. Good to know that her daughter still trusted her, even after everything that had happened.

“I hope I'm not interrupting anything important.” Ana turned to see Angela standing in the door, grinning across at the two of them.

“No, I think we covered about everything we needed to. Right, Fareeha?”

“Yes. Yeah, just about everything. We'll probably be going over most of it again soon, anyway.” Fareeha's gaze flicked between the two of them, and she pushed herself further up in her bed. “So, are you here to let me go? Do I finally get to go back to work?”

“Well, not straight away. You're tests are fine, and there's no reason for you to stay here, but you're going to be taking things easy for a while. I won't be happy if you're back in a few days because you've aggravated something.” Fareeha grinned, stretching her arms over her head and groaning quietly.

“Nothing to worry about, Angela. When have you ever known me to push myself too hard?” Ana raised her eyebrow, watching her daughter chuckle as she heard Angela sigh behind her.

“I have never known you to do anything other than that. We're going to have a nice discussion about all the fun things that could happen if you do it again.” Ana felt hands pressing down on her shoulders, and looked up to see Angela grinning down at her. “You can wait in my office, if you'd like. I'll come meet you once I'm finished here.”

“I suppose I might as well go make myself comfortable. I don't need to be here while you teach my daughter how not to hurt herself.” She pushed herself from her seat, smiling as she felt Angela squeeze her shoulders a little harder. “We can talk more later, Fareeha. We can work on your plans, and you can figure out anything else that you need me to do.” Ana heard a cough, and glanced at Fareeha, watching her raise an eyebrow and sigh.

“If you could stop flirting with my doctor, I think that would be a good start.” Ana rolled her eye and stepped away from Angela. Part of her wanted to tease Fareeha about the number of times she'd seen her gushing over Lena, but she decided against it. There was hardly any fun in it if Lena wasn't around. “I'll let you know when we're going to plan some more. Try and set up a meeting. Get everyone involved.”

“There'll certainly be no shortage of people giving their input. Might have to find a way to quieten Reinhardt if he gets stuck on a tangent, which will almost certainly happen.” Ana chuckled as she backed towards the door, watching Fareeha sigh and lay back on the bed as Angela approached her. “It's going to be good to see you back on your feet."

“It's going to be good to be sleep in my own bed. Now, go do whatever it is you're doing that I really don't want to know about.” Ana grinned, closing the door behind her and savouring a final glimpse of Angela biting her lip. She wasn't entirely sure what was planned for that evening, what exactly they'd doing. Still, it sounded like a change from the norm. If nothing else, it would hopefully prove to be an interesting experience.

Angela's door was sitting ajar, and Ana could hear a quiet swearing from within as she approached. She slipped inside, struggling not to laugh as she saw Aleks pulling out lengths of rope from a bag, seemingly struggling not to tie herself up in the process.

“So, are you ready for me yet?” Aleks turned slowly to face her, cheeks glowing as she glanced down at the ropes. She mouthed silently a few times, staring down at the ropes draping over her arms and tugging unsuccessfully at it.

“I could use a bit of help. Got distracted by something else, and, well...” Aleks trailed off, staring up at Ana and shrugging. It was the last straw, and Ana snorted, struggling for breath as she closed the gap between them. “There's a lot of rope here. This could have happened to anyone.”

“Sure they do. We can go with that if it makes you feel better.” Ana pulled the last length away and set it aside, lowering herself into. “Maybe we should wait for Angela. Let her, you know, show you the ropes.” Aleks nodded as she took the seat next to her, turning to face her with a sigh after a moment.

“That was actually quite good, in a very bad way. A nice change from your usual jokes.” Ana gasped in mock offence, leaning into Aleks and looking up into her eyes.

“I'm shocked that you'd say such a thing. I'm one of the funniest people on this base and you know it.” She started to chuckle as she pushed at Aleks, entirely unsurprised by the total lack of movement on her part.

“Of course I know it. Just haven't figured out why you only use this talent to tell jokes worse than Reinhardt's.”

“Honestly, I help you out and this is the treatment I get? Should have just let you get yourself all tied up.” She felt Aleks' hand closing around hers, and watched her cheeks start to redden again.

“I mean, that could probably be fun. Not really what Angela had in mind, though.” Ana grinned, pushing herself up till she was hovering just in front of her face. She wouldn't ever get tired of how easy it was to make her blush. Wouldn't get tired of finding new ways to do it.

“You're adorable. Probably the most adorable superior I've ever had.” She closed her eye, and moved in for a kiss, slipping a hand along Aleks' back. Ana squeezed her a little tighter, waiting till she felt her mouth start to open before pulling back. “I mean, I didn't date most of them, so maybe that's colouring my view of it. What do you think?” Aleks shifted, and a strong hand slipped to the small of her back, pulling her in again.

“I mean, most people don't really call me adorable, but I won't argue. Your judgement's generally pretty good.” Ana chuckled as she pressed her forehead against Aleks', feeling warm breath brush over her lips. “Do you want to talk about what happened earlier? Did you get a chance to go over it with Fareeha?”

“I did. I think that's enough, for now. You can let me know more when you have things organised.” She opened her eye, staring into Aleks'. She brushed her hand up through Aleks' hair, smiling as the bristles turned to something she could run through her fingers. It was fun, playing with her hair like this. Being close to her. Something she was glad she still had the chance to do, whenever she had the chance to do it. “I trust your judgement too. After all, you are dating me.”

“Angela, too. Solid evidence that I've got good taste in women, if nothing else.” Ana bit her lip, biting back a laugh as she pushed Aleks' hair forward. “You're gonna mess it up if you don't stop.”

“It'll get messed up anyway. No harm in getting started early.” She rubbed her hand across it, listening to Aleks sigh as more tufts started sticking out. Ana knew how much time she put into getting her hair right, and that just made ruining it all the more fun. “We should go to the beach sometime. A little holiday. See how you look once you've got a bit of salt in this.” Ana gave a little tug, licking her lip as Aleks' eyes fluttered for a moment.

“Seems like it might be a decent way to mess up my hair. Not the best, but decent.” Ana felt fingers running up and down her back, faltering for a moment whenever she gave Aleks' hair another little pull. “Still, don't think we'll have any time for it soon. Things are going to be getting busy, after all.”

“Well, it can always be a long term plan. We change the world, then we go on holiday. Hawaii would be a good choice. A nice place to relax after we beat the bad guys.” She closed her eye, pulling on Aleks' hair till she felt their lips brush against each other. “Plus, it'll give me a chance to wear my swimsuit. It'll give Angela an excuse, too. You might be one of the only people in the world who'll get a chance to see both of us like that.”

“I mean, when you put it like that, I don't think I have much of a choice, do I?” Ana chuckled, kissing Aleks' cheek and squeezing her hand tight. “So, what should we do in the meantime? Aside from, you know, saving the world.”

“This is a decent start. Seems like a good way to wait for Angela.” She didn't want to think about what was going to come later. Not yet. She'd spent enough of her life worrying about the future, letting it eat away at her. She had a chance to forget it all for a little while, a chance to just be with the people she cared about. It was better than any retirement she'd ever dreamed of. Better than anything she'd ever expected. She didn't know how long it would last, but she'd enjoy it while she could. It might not be what she deserved, but it was what she needed. That was all that really mattered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright. This is done, and it's partly me trying to work out ideas for how the wider world in Overwatch works, and mostly me just throwing out ideas and seeing what I like. Hope y'all have enjoyed it.

**Author's Note:**

> For more of my work as well as rambling about other nonsense, come see me at theflyingpeanutwritesthings.tumblr.com.


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